We are getting into all the Shark Week fun here on Getting Curious with Dr. Gavin Naylor! Jonathan and Gavin dive deep into all things sharks: Are attacks really becoming more common, or is that just our perception? Why are there only 530 species of sharks, and what makes them so resilient? What does intrauterine cannibalism mean? And Dr. Naylor tells us about how he’s able to study the marvels of evolutionary biology through his focus on sharks and what makes them so unique.

Dr. Gavin Naylor is the director of the Florida Program for Shark Research at the Florida Museum of Natural History. He focuses his research on evolution, genetics, biogeography and the natural history of sharks. Dr. Naylor is also interested in the exploration of the biodiversity of sharks and rays, phylogenetic inference, protein folding, molecular evolution and the origin of architectural novelty.

You can follow the Florida Program for Shark Research at the Florida Museum of Natural History on Instagram and YouTube @FloridaMuseum

Follow us on Instagram @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation. Jonathan is on Instagram @JVN.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Find books from Getting Curious guests at bookshop.org/shop/curiouswithjvn.

Our senior producers are Chris McClure and Julia Melfi. Our editor & engineer is Nathanael McClure. Production support from Julie Carrillo, Anne Currie, and Chad Hall.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Curious about bringing your brand to life on the show? Email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices